


Sleepy Twilight

by cluelass



Category: Sleepy Hollow (TV), Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Crossover, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-09-15
Updated: 2014-10-03
Packaged: 2018-02-17 12:37:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2309918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cluelass/pseuds/cluelass
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is my attempt to re-write the Twilight books, splicing in some of the characters from the TV show Sleepy Hollow, and reverting to some of the original lore of vampires, with the lofty goal of improving the problematic work. The main characters from Sleepy Hollow will have more of a supporting role, while I would like to give the secondary character Macey (Bean) Irving, Frank’s daughter, the leading role here. Be forewarned that much artistic license will be taken (I’m going to butcher characters and plotlines alike). Also, the chapters will be much shorter, but (supposedly) more numerous. Hopefully it will inspire the reader(s) to watch Sleepy Hollow.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Booker Lynton walked out of Paddy’s and fumbled with his car keys for a minute, trying to figure out which end he was supposed to stick into the door. The sounds from the pub slowly faded behind him as he stumbled across the parking lot in the general direction of his vehicle. The warm summer air kept enticing him to simply nod off, regardless of whether or not that was a good idea. Luckily there weren’t many cars left at this point, so he found the right one after only the second try.

 

“There you are,” he muttered, the words slurring slightly. He should probably stop off somewhere to get a cup of coffee to sober up before hitting the highway. He knew he should really call a taxi . . . but it was a half hour’s drive back home, and those driver’s always charged outrageous prices. He’d lose half his paycheck on the trip, even if he probably hadn’t already spent that much in the last two hours alone. And he was a really good driver, so there was no way he’d get in an accident. Booker had just bent over the driver’s side to squint at the keyhole, when a smooth, low voice spoke.

 

“Don’t you know drinking and driving can get you killed?”

 

Booker startled slightly, turning halfway to see a man leaning nonchalantly against the hood of his car. He blinked, but his eyes refused to make out the stranger’s face in the darkness and drink haze. His mouth curled into a snarl at the nerve of the stranger butting into his private affairs.

 

“Who the hell are you?” he demanded. His ears heard something closer to “WhoOooll arrrrrrooo?” A low chuckle emanated from the bastard. He was laughing at him! Booker’s hands clenched into fists, and he dimly felt the cold metal of the key digging into his flesh, when even through the fog that surrounded his senses he noticed something weird. The man was staring at his hand and smiling, and despite the darkness, Booker could clearly see his gleaming, white teeth.

 

“Goodness me,” the man said softly, his mouth getting even wider, “You seem to have scratched yourself. Shall I take a look?” Booker said nothing, but continued to stare, open-mouthed, at the stranger’s teeth, as they got closer, and closer.

 

What a peculiar shape they were.


	2. Chapter 2

“Hey Bean.”

 

Macey had already spotted her dad standing against the wall when he called out to her, but she grinned widely and wheeled past the airport exit terminal towards him.

 

“Daddy!” she squealed, reaching out long arms. The usually stern face of Captain Frank Irving beamed widely as he bent over to hug his daughter in her wheelchair, squishing the duffelbag she had laying across her lap.

 

“Oof!” he shook his head in mock horror, “You’re not still growing, are you?”

 

Macey rolled her eyes at him, and sighed. “You know, once puberty starts, kids start releasing growth hormones, that can cause the average girl to grow at roughly-”

 

“Welp, can’t be dawdling around here all day,” her dad said loudly, drowning out the basic biology lecture. He walked around to grab the handles of her wheelchair and started pushing. “So, which baggage claim was it, again?”

 

“I’m all set, Dad,” she said, jerking a thumb at the backpack hanging off the back of the wheelchair, and patting the duffel bag.

 

She could almost hear her father’s eyebrows rising. “What, aren’t girls supposed to take three suitcases with them when they go on vacation?”

 

“One, it’s not a vacation, unless you want me to ditch school for three months,” she lectured, waving her pointer finger out to the side so he could see it, “Two, that’s sexist, and three, that’s what dad’s are for - to buy me all the things I didn’t bring,” she finished brightly. She was silent about four, that she didn’t like taking suitcases.

 

“Now hold up,” her dad tried to make his voice gruff, but she could hear the crackle of mirth, “Don’t you have an allowance or some such?”

 

“But that’s for stuff I want, not stuff I need,” Macey whined.

 

“Might be time to find a job, then,” her dad said.

 

“Isn’t it illegal to hire fourteen-year-olds? Aren’t there child labor laws that you should be upholding, Mr. Captain Policeman Sir?”

 

“Dear God, please never become a lawyer like your mother,” her dad muttered. He cleared his throat. “So, how is your mother these days?”

 

“Fine,” she said simply, “Busy moving the final boxes with Phil. Have you called her, yet?”

 

“Right, I should text her you landed,” her dad muttered.

 

Macey sighed. That wasn’t what she’d meant. Her parents had divorced - well, separated - a couple of years ago, but had never actually filed the papers for divorce until her mom met Phil Whittemore. He was a defense attorney from something-or-other, Vermont. Macey felt a small pang of guilt that she kept forgetting the details of her mother’s new true love. Granted it was a very small pang. She had been quite relieved when her dad had agreed to her moving out to Washington to live with him. Though she’d told her parents it was because she wanted to concentrate on high school, and getting into college, and it was hard to do that with two busy lawyers in the household now, the real reason -

 

“Say, do you remember Billy Black?” her dad asked.

 

“Huh? Yeah, um-” Macey squinted, then shook her head. “No?”

 

Her dad chuckled. “Native American, long black hair, always wears plaid,” he prompted.

 

His words conjured up a sudden image of a leathery, wrinkled face, and the smell of engine oil. “Kinda . . .”  she murmured, “Drinking buddy?”

 

Her dad made a low growl in his throat. “You know, adults often drink together while being social, it’s not like the point is to drink . . .” His voice trailed into silence, and Macey waited patiently for the point.

 

“He’s in a wheelchair, now,” her dad said. She could hear the subtle guilt in his tone, even though she knew he tried never to let it show in front of her. Macey quietly digested this bit of news. Most people would ask what happened, when it happened, how he was handling the “loss.” She hated those sorts of questions.

 

“So he’ll be stopping by, then?” Macey guessed.

 

“Probably,” her dad murmured.

 

She smiled. “He must be happy you added all those ramps to the house for me.”

 

“And asked me for help in building some for his own,” Captain Irving said proudly, then added, “Although this time we had a lot more help from the other guys at the reservation. And speaking of help-”

 

Macey let in a deep breath and sighed. Of course.

 

“I don’t think you ever met her, but Billy has a daughter, Jackie, who’s going to the same high school you’ll be going to - ”

 

“And offered me a ride,” Macey finished. Almost on cue, she spotted her dad’s police cruiser. “Can’t police park closer than this?”

 

“That, young lady, would be an abuse of power,” her father reprimanded.

 

“Oh, sure,” Macey muttered to herself as her dad set the brakes and picked up the backpack and duffelbag, “And you wonder why you got demoted.”

 

She took the brakes off and wheeled herself around to the front of the cruiser, opening the door with a well-practiced violent jerk.

 

“Honey, I got it,” her dad had already stepped back to her side. Macey was quiet as he picked her up and placed her gently on the seat. She knew protesting would only hurt his feelings, even if she could no longer stomach acting grateful for the codling.

 

“Oof,” her dad grunted, good-naturedly, she knew, though it still irked her, “We gotta get rid of those dang growth hormones.”

 

“And that’s why you’re a police chief and not a biologist,” Macey said loftily. Her dad opened his mouth to protest, when a crackle from the police radio threw it sharply down. Macey froze, daring not to breath, as the call came through. As the rapid-fire, staticky voice echoed in the air, try as she might, Macey could only make out a couple terms.

 

“. . . units respond to . . . parking lot . . . personnel confirmed . . . 29D”

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

It was a couple of hikers who had first discovered the body and reported it. According to the 911 operator they’d been too freaked out to get close or touch anything, which was a relief. A light drizzle had set in that morning, but by the time Sheriff August Corbin and Lieutenant Abbie Mills arrived at the scene, the grey sky had cleared up into a rather muted blue.

Lieutenant Mills peered through the camera lens and kept her hands as steady as possible as she took another wide shot of the scene. Years of practice allowed her to keep her face perfectly neutral, as if she wasn’t surreptitiously eavesdropping on her partner’s conversation.

“Frank, we’ve got a handle on this,” Sheriff Corbin was a couple feet back behind her, arguing into his cell. Abbie’s eyelids didn’t even twitch as she fought back the wince. The Captain found it patronizing when Corbin called him by his first name. And usually Corbin only did it when the Sheriff was telling the Captain not to butt in.

“-know how to do my job. We’ve cleared the scene - trust me when I say EMTs weren’t necessary - now Abbie and I are-” His voice cut off, and he scowled, looking down at the trail. After another minute, there was a terse “Yes, sir.” He looked up and caught Abbie’s eye. She quickly walked out of earshot, setting up another corner shot. As she circled back, she heard Corbin approaching, an exasperated sigh giving his presence away before the heavy tread of his boots.

“Someone needs to sit that man down and lecture him for working too hard,” Corbin grumbled.

“But you’re the last person to tell him that, sir?” Abbie smiled, automatically falling into step besides him. The two of them ducked under the police tape as they made their way carefully back towards the body, making sure not to trip on any of the loose rocks or jutting roots sprawling across the dirt.

“My kingdom for some respect,” Corbin protested, but Abbie could see him fighting a smile behind the white beard. Then the glimmer in his eyes died as they looked down at the body, lying face up in the middle of the trail, eyes wide and staring.

“All right, Abs,” he said quietly, “I know this might be a little extreme for this neck of the woods, and it’s easy to jump to conclusions, but that makes it all the more important we dot our i’s and cross our t’s.” He shook his head and looked away. Not in disgust: Abbie could his eyes swiftly scanning the ground around the victim. Abbie started taking pictures of the body itself, and then placed a ruler next to the neck in order to take a couple close-ups.

“You saw the blood stain in the first sweep, right?” Corbin asked. Abbie nodded. He grimaced at the still-cloudy sky. “Although all this damn water seems to have wiped away a bunch of it.”

“And any bootprints,” Abbie added. Corbin grunted, but it was more acknowledgement than agreement.

“Almost twenty-five years in this town, and . . .” his voice trailed off, as he squatted to peer closely at the decedent’s neck.

Abbie could barely hear Corbin speaking, he was talking so low.

“Poor bastard.”

* * *

“Alright, Billy and Jacky should be by in about half an hour,” Captain Irving called to Macey from the dining room, placing the phone back in it’s cradle. He jogged lightly down the hall into her room - it was on the right side of the house, easy access from the front door. There was another door in her room that led to her own personal bathroom. Macey was calmly placing another shirt on its new hanger and putting it in her closet when her dad rushed up and paused, breathing heavily, in the doorway.

“Dad, I’ll be fine,” Macey repeated, exasperated, “I can unpack by myself, and I promise I won’t even try to burn the house down.”

“See, it’s the try part that I have an issue with,” her dad quipped, though she could see how strained he looked.

“Go,” she made a shooing motion, “You can make it up to me by picking up a pizza on your way back.”

“Right,” her dad grinned, “Extra anchovies, naturally.”

“Naturally,” Macey echoed. She smiled and nodded as her dad kept making excuses, while walking away. She yelled a goodbye as he walked out the door, slamming it shut behind him. She couldn’t be mad with him. She knew what an emergency a sudden dead body was. And honestly, it kind of unnerved her. In New York you’d hear about a body turning up and it’d just be like a case of bad weather - unpleasant but not exactly unheard of. But out here? Macey wondered half-heartedly if maybe she’d just brought bad luck with her. Her rational mind quickly dismissed such a ridiculous assertion. She could be no more responsible for a random death here than she could be responsible for the rain.

When she’d finished unpacking her clothes from the duffelbag (she hadn’t brought much, since as she’d warned her father she’d probably buy a bunch of necessities once here), she wheeled over to the desk and started setting up her laptop.

“Ah, shoot,” Macey muttered. She’d forgotten to ask her dad for the WiFi password. No point in turning it on, then, until he got back. She considered texting him, briefly, then decided it was best not to bother him. The few books she’d brought with her she placed carefully on the shelves in easy reach above her desk, then took out her toiletry kit and headed for the bathroom.

Macey placed her toothpaste and toothbrush carefully down on the counter over the sink. She’d have to go steal a cup from the kitchen. Her reflection glanced at her intermittently in the mirror above the sink as she put away the rest of her supplies. Macey’s mom always straightened her hair, but Macey liked to keep hers napptural.

Macey thought about taking a shower, but didn’t think she’d finish in time before her dad’s friend and her new fellow classmate got there. She rolled her eyes and sighed. It was nice that her dad was looking out for her, she just wished he wasn’t so paranoid about it. She wheeled herself out into the hallway. She supposed she could at least make something to drink for her guests. And if she was lucky, one of them would be able to tell her what the password was.

 


	4. Chapter 4

The roar of a truck engine alerted Macey to the arrival of Billy and Jackie Black. She wheeled herself out onto the porch, and watched as a spry figure jumped down from the front seat. Jackie had red-brown skin, and long black hair that she kept tied in a ponytail below her neck. She was wearing a worn baseball cap, plaid jacket, and loose jeans. Macey peered out through the rain that was slowly getting heavier and frowned. She had never really considered herself fashionable . . . but jeez. It was a quite the culture shock from New York. She’d have to be mindful she didn’t insult some of the people around here for dressing like a bunch of-

 

Macey tried ineffectively to hide her sudden laugh with a cough.

 

“Macey Irving! Good to see you again, gi- what’s that look for?” Billy wheeled up the porch ramp with a quizzical expression on his face. Macey kept her head turned away, trying desperately to stifle her laughter. The man was dressed exactly the same as his daughter - minus the baseball cap. And technically, his plaid shirt had more red, while Jackie’s had more blue.

 

“Sorry, um, come on in, uh,” Macey waved a hand, a bit embarrassed, “It’ just - she gestured at the two of them, “I can tell you’re related, I guess?” Jackie, who had been walking up to Macey with a smile and outstretched arm, suddenly recoiled in horror.

 

“Ugh,” Jackie groaned, clutching her chest, “Don’t say something so revolting,” Billy reached a hand out, but with the obvious ease of practice, Jackie jumped just out of reach. Macey, however, was surprised by Jackie’s voice.

 

“Hang on,” Macey stared up at Jackie, “How old are you?”

 

There was a very long, very silent pause.

 

“Sixteen,” Jackie said, in an obviously deeper voice. She held out her hand for Macey to shake, and finished with a complete poker face, “I’m just a year behind in school.”

 

“. . . right,” Macey said, dubiously, taking the hand. Jackie had a surprisingly tight grip, and Macey could feel calluses in her hands. “I’m gonna die,” Macey whispered, as she wheeled around and led the way into the dining room.

 

“Jackie’s fine,” Billy called as he followed the two girls inside, “She was a better driver at thirteen than any of those reckless high school kids. And knows more about cars than the lot of them combined.”

 

Macey offered him a glass of lemonade, and he grabbed it from her with a nod of thanks. Jackie picked her own glass up and downed half of it in one gulp.

 

“You like cars?” Macey asked her, curious. She’d never honestly been interested in them, for obvious reasons, she just kind of put up with them. But she supposed from an engineering perspective . . .

 

Jackie’s eyes lit up, but before she could open her mouth, Billy waved a dismissive hand and gave her a warning glance.

 

“Don’t get her started, Macey, she’ll just talk your ears off about stuff you won’t understand,” Billy said, smiling. Macey tried not to feel insulted that he immediately assumed she wouldn’t understand, but let him change the subject.

 

“So how do you like the scenery here? Greener than what you’re used to, I’ll bet.”

 

“A little greener,” Macey agreed, “Still wet,” she made a face, and Jackie laughed.

 

“Were-” Billy caught himself quickly, “Now that you’re out of the city smog proper, would you be interested in exploring some of the trails near our place?” He gestured to himself and Jackie.

 

Macey cocked her head questioningly. “I suppose,” she said carefully, “I hadn’t really considered it. You guys build a special path, or something?”

 

Billy jerked a thumb at Jackie, who explained eagerly, “Naw, that’d be too much trouble, see, especially when the terrain’s unstable, not to mention the cost of all that wood.” She leaned forward, and grinned cheekily, “So me and dad, we set up a zip-line kinda thing-”

 

“Zip line?” Macey echoed. She felt like she’d heard the term before, but couldn’t picture what it was.

 

“It’s pretty easy,” Jackie said, “Just one long line that you put up high, like at the top of a tree, and the other end farther down, then you clip a harness on another line to it-” She made a whooshing motion with her arm, “And zip down from high up down to the ground. It’s not too steep, naturally,” she conceded, “Just enough to get gravity to do the pulling for you.”

 

“So you’ve got a zip-line hiking trail?” Macey asked, letting excitement creep into her voice, “That actually sounds really cool!”

 

Jackie puffed up, but then deflated slightly, “Kinda. It’s hard to set up the starting point in a tree, so it’s more like a line you clip onto, and then pull another line to move yourself along.”

 

“So a horizontal pulley system with a harness,” Macey clarified.

 

“Yeeeeeeah . . . only less of a harness, more of an old swing seat,” Jackie said sheepishly, “Mostly used junkyard scraps I could get free, you know?”

 

“No, it’s fine!” Macey said, excitedly, “That’s actually really brilliant!” she beamed at Jackie, who grinned back. “I’d love to go hiking with you two sometime!”

 

“Ah,” Jackie’s smile froze.

 

Billy chuckled, “It’ll have to be just the two of you at present,” he said dryly, “I’m afraid the brilliant engineer here only designed the system for one.”

 

Jackie started sputtering protests, while Macey laughed. She took a sip of her own lemonade and listened to the two of them banter for a bit, before remembering she’d needed to ask something important.

 

“By the way,” Macey interrupted, cutting off Jackie’s defensive expletives, “Do either of you know the WiFi password?”

 

* * *

 

It was thundering so hard the next morning, that Macey and her father didn’t hear Jackie banging on the front door initially. Macey didn’t know what time Captain Irving had gotten home last night, since the pizza had been delivered without him, but he’d been up and making her breakfast by the time she wheeled into the dining room, her eyes bright, and backpack ready and waiting on her lap. Technically it was pretty much empty, just a notebook and pencils, since she’d be getting her textbooks for the first time at school today. And technically her dad had simply set a bowl, spoon, cereal, and milk on the table for her, and grunted, before sitting down himself.

 

“Good morning, dad,” Macey said cheerfully, pouring cereal into her bowl.

 

“No,” her dad mumbled, covering his head with his hand.

 

Macey resisted the urge to poke at her father, and ate as quietly as possible. She had seen the dark circles under his eyes. She hoped he’d at least gotten a little sleep. The captain was getting too old for all-nighters, though he’d never admit to such a suggestion.

 

“Oy!” the sudden interruption of Jackie’s loud voice made both father and daughter jump. Macey turned to see Jackie sticking her head around the entranceway. The lanky teenager was dripping wet.

 

“Where’s your umbrella?” Macey asked, at the same time her dad threw his head back and mouthed something at the ceiling.

 

“No point,” Jackie explained, walking over to sit with a squelch at the table with the two of them.

 

Macey’s dad stood up abruptly, pointed at Jackie, said, “This house will be dry by the time I get back.” He then proceeded to grab his coat off the back of his chair and march out of the dining room.

 

“Bye daddy,” Macey called after him, “Love you!”

 

Captain Frank Irving promptly turned on his heel, walked back into the room, and kissed the top of Macey’s head before speeding off once more.

 

“Tooooouchie,” Jackie drawled, making a face. But only after they had both heard the front door shut. “Not a morning person?”

 

“Not a person person,” Macey giggled. She finished her cereal and brought her bowl over to the sink.

 

“‘Xcept for daaaaaddy’s liiiiiittle giiiiirl,” Jackie teased in a sing-song voice, as Macey washed out her bowl and then put it in the dishwasher.

 

“It’s not because I’m his daughter,” Macey looked over her shoulder and grinned, “It’s because I’m just that amazing.”

 

Since she was an only child, Macey was too naive to realize the danger she was in until Jackie was already applying the chokehold.

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

For all her misgivings, Macey had to admit that Jackie turned out to be a very good driver. She had started out with a death-grip on the handrail as soon as Jackie merged onto the highway, but despite the downpour, the girl handled the wheel with the ease of experience, and so Macey had slowly released her grasp and sank bank into her seat. She’d had the foresight to bring along a raincoat and umbrella - even though Jackie kept telling her to just get used to being wet all the time.

 

The sign for the high school was so small that Macey missed it - luckily Jackie knew where they were going - and when they arrived Macey couldn’t help but stare in surprise. Instead of one big building, the school appeared to be a bunch of smaller buildings, spread out like a college campus. Macey felt her heart sinking as Jackie parked in front of the first one, which had a sign next to the door that read “Front Office”.

 

“Please tell me they have secret tunnels beneath the buildings,” Macey groaned. Looks like her dad had forgotten to check the place out ahead of time.

 

“That,” Jackie paused, “Would be brilliant. But nope,” she grinned, “You gotta walk- er, wheel outside to get between classes. But you should suggest secret tunnels.” Jackie jumped out of the front seat, then walked around to Macey’s side. Macey was expecting her to unfold her wheelchair from the back and help her into it, but to her shock Jackie simply picked her up, and started carrying her towards the front office. Macey gasped and gripped both of Jackie’s shoulder hard.

 

“STOP!” Macey yelled, loud enough to cause Jackie to freeze and look down at her with wide eyes. Macey tried to compose herself and keep her voice from trembling. “Please put me back in the front seat,” she said carefully, “And then set up my wheelchair.” Rain started pooling in her lap, trickling underneath her raincoat and onto her skirt.

 

“But-” Jackie stammered, “It’ll be faster if I-”

 

“I. Don’t. Care,” Macey said softly, staring into Jackie’s eyes, “It’s not your decision to make.” She emphasized “your” by raising her eyebrows.

 

“Oh,” Jackie mumbled, looking away. She carried Macey back towards the truck, “Sorry, I didn’t mean-”

 

Macey took a deep breath, “I know,” she said, teeth still clenched, “But please remember to ask me before you do something like that again.”

 

“But-” Jackie put Macey back in the seat, then waved a hand helplessly towards the front office. “They haven’t put up a ramp for you yet-”

 

“Then please go inside and ask them to set one up,” Macey responded evenly. “But first please help me into my wheelchair.”

 

“You’re just gonna sit out here in the rain and wait?” Jackie asked, incredulous.

 

Macey wanted to scream at her. Tell her to stop treating her like a goddam broken doll. Like good intentions were an excuse to bypass bodily autonomy. She’d made the mistake of being nice to Phil, and as a result he’d never taken her protests seriously. She didn’t want to alienate Jackie on her second day meeting her, but . . .

 

“Yes,” Macey said finally, voice sensible and quiet. Her throat felt strained, as if she’d actually been yelling. “Please hurry.”

 

Jackie threw her hands in the air and yelled, “Fine!” She wrestled Macey’s wheelchair from the backseat, and set it down rather violently on the ground. Macey stiffened when Jackie approached her, but the girl set her carefully down into the seat. Without another word, Jackie stormed off, opening the front office door and slamming it behind her.

 

Macey took out her umbrella and opened it with trembling fingers. She couldn’t help feeling shaken by the encounter. She knew the both of them were only just getting to know each other, but Jackie’s forcefulness, which had started off as endearing, was now getting to be unnerving. She wanted to ask her dad to take over driving her to school. But she couldn’t let herself be that selfish.

 

It was a while before Macey saw Jackie opening the door, leaving it open for someone behind her. Macey drew in a sudden breath of relief when she saw a woman behind Jackie setting up a wooden ramp. She felt her heart skip a beat as she surveyed it. It looked like someone had built the thing that morning. Or maybe a couple minutes ago.

 

Macey closed her umbrella and slipped it into her backpack before wheeling herself towards the door. Maybe Jackie had been right about it afterall - she was most likely going to end up wet no matter what she did. Macey paused in front of the ramp to nod her thanks at Jackie and the woman. Jackie didn’t return the girl’s gaze, but mumbled something that Macey missed before heading off, shoulders hunched against the rain. The woman who had helped set up the ramp motioned quickly for Macey to come inside. Her face looked irritated.

 

“I’ve got your paperwork,” the woman said. She walked off before Macey could double-check the safety of the wooden ramp, her heels clicked on the floor as she walked around a tall wooden counter to a small desk. Macey wheeled herself quickly up the ramp, her heart slowing down after she made it into the room without even a groaning sound from the wood.

 

“Here’s your schedule, a map of the school, and list of required materials,” the woman, Macey still didn’t know her name, said, walking back over to Macey and holding out a folder. A couple raindrops fell from her red hair, curled around her face. Macey took the folder with a nod, and murmured, “Thank you,” before opening it to scan through the items quickly.

 

“I sent your friend off with a copy of your schedule to give to the janitor so he can tend to your needs,” the woman continued, “Some of the buildings were not built with ramps, so he will have one set up whenever you need to change buildings.” Macey bristled at the disapproving tone in the woman’s voice. She refrained from asking why the janitor hadn’t been given her schedule and prepared already.

 

“May I ask when you’re planning to install ramps on the remaining buildings, then?” Macey asked, her voice as sweet as she could fake it.

 

The woman frowned at her. “That is a question for the school board, not for me. But as I said, we are already doing everything we can-”

 

“And is your school board aware of the Americans with Disabilities Act?” Macey cut her off, voice growing louder, “Which requires-”

 

“We have already done more than enough to accommodate you, Miss Irving,” the woman interrupted back, “And I’m sure your peers can contact the janitor or front office if you have any problems.”

 

“What if I’m alone and need to contact someone?” Macey asked. Oh, she was definitely going to call her mother after she got home.

 

“Cell phones are not permitted while at school,” the woman said curtly, “Just ask someone else for help.”

 

Macey had a feeling she’d get expelled for accurately expressing her feelings using words at this point, so she made do with using her eyebrows.

 

“Please keep in mind your circumstances do not excuse you from being late,” the woman snapped back at her. She held an arm out. “If you don’t have any more questions, I’d like to close the door now.”

 

Macey had long ago learned adult code words for “Stop making things difficult for me.” On the way back down the ramp, she held her wheels as firmly as possible, inching down much slower than necessary. She was lucky for the cover of the pounding rain. It drowned out the string of expletives she was muttering.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time writing fanfiction, so any (constructive) feedback would be warmly appreciated!


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